Chapter 97

Alessandro

I took the stairs three at a time, my injured hand forgotten, the bandage pulling tight against healing flesh as I gripped the banister. The marble steps blurred beneath my feet, each one bringing me closer to whatever I was going to find behind Isabella’s door. My heart was slamming against my ribs so hard I could feel it in my throat, in my temples, in the spaces between my thoughts, but I didn’t care.

Maria’s voice kept echoing in my head—so much blood—and every step felt like it was taking too long, like I was moving through thick water while Isabella bled out somewhere above me.

When I reached her floor, I could hear them before I could see them. Voices calling out instructions, the rapid squeak of wheels on marble, the metallic clatter of medical equipment being moved with urgent precision. The sounds were coming from her room, spilling out through the open door like smoke from a fire.

I rounded the corner and stopped dead. The